So a while back I downloaded this app called Paktor and went on a disastrous blind date. You might have read about it here. Needless to say, my venture on Paktor put me off dating apps for quite a while. And also made me sort of lose hope in the future of humanity.

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But the great people at Paktor have launched a new offline dating agency! Called GaiGai, the agency organises a wide range of events for you to expand your social circle and have fun while doing so. And because I’m admired for both my extraordinary beauty and immense courage, they invited me to try it out…

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I was given a range of events to choose from — from fine dining on a boat, to meet-ups at cafés. But I opted for a round of drinking games at The Papa Shop. My rationale was that alcohol would loosen everyone up, make the atmosphere a little less awkward, and hopefully a bit more conducive to hold conversations.

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And I guess it kinda worked. The event was very well facilitated, and I think that everyone had fun. I also made quite a few friends that night. If you’re considering signing up for some GaiGai meetups, here are some takeaways I got from the event.

#1 Everyone wears black

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Well, I don’t know if this was purely coincidental, or if people naturally steer towards black outfits. My theory is that everyone who attended this event was secretly an antisocial introvert, mourning for the loss of their stay-in Saturday. My friend’s theory is that black is more figure-flattering. Hah. I wish that worked on me.

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But seriously, everyone was in black. Except for me. I was colourfully dressed in pink and blue because I was marking the 2-week death anniversary of my fighting fish. My fighting fish was blue and pink. He led a very comfortable 5-day long life. Yes. I have issues with letting go. Possibly one of the reasons why I’m single.

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But yes, if you want to fit in with the hoi polloi, do remember to wear black.

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#2 Show your enthusiasm

The great thing about GaiGai is the variety of events you can choose from. Though most of them are food-related (because, you know, it’s Singapore and we love our food) I also noticed other non-food activities such as laser tag and badminton in the July calendar of events.

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Regardless of which activity you sign up for, I think it’s important to be enthusiastic. If you’ve paid for an experience, you might as well make the most of it, no? Say you signed up for drinking games, wouldn’t it make the most sense (economical sense, especially) for you to participate in all the games and drink your fill? No point holding back and letting other people take your turn, right? Besides, it’s kinda awkward for the people watching too.

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Or maybe it’s just me. I get awkward far too easily for my own good.

#3 Be friendly

If I understand correctly, the point of GaiGai is meeting other singles and possibly matching with someone of the opposite gender whom you might want to spend more time with. So don’t leave straight after the event! Hang around and talk to everyone.

It’s hard to get to know someone well in a short span of say, 2 hours. That said, you shouldn’t spend your time hiding in the corner gossiping with just one of your newly made friends. Sit at the table with other people. Hang out. Have fun. Your new friend of the same gender can wait.

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#4 Prepare to stay back

I can’t speak for all events, but the GaiGai event that I went for was really fun, and the people were great. What this means is that you might want to hang out for a bit after the official activities are completed.

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Don’t be a wet blanket! Stay back and interact with your new friends. It’s to my knowledge that most people aren’t weird and strange.

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I said most.

#5 Optimism helps

I realise that not everyone has the best of luck when it comes to finding someone whom you like to spend time with. Your non-existent love life is fuelled by your pickiness, numerous character flaws, and your inexplicable knack of running into horrible guys.

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But you know, head up and just keep an open mind. I can’t say that I’m sure you’ll find someone someday, but I’m sure you can have fun while doing so.

Brought to you by: Jac, a.k.a. @behindthebasics. Jac spends most of her free time wondering what she is doing with her life. Apart from finding a cure for cancer, achieving world peace, and saving the universe with her superpowers of course. Oh and shopping!